The Calgary Flames were supposed to be a better team than the Colorado Avalanche, what with their 50 regular season wins and all, plus a deep offensive threat, solid defencemen and a netminder who proved age was just a number.

They won the Western Conference with stars like Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, Elias Lindholm, Mikael Backlund, Matthew Tkachuk and Mark Giordano while the Avalanche had clawed and scratched their way into the National Hockey League’s post-season. The No. 8 seed had their stars, too. But not the depth Calgary had.

Yet when the games actually happened and the going got tough, the No. 1 seed had no answer for the Avalanche who came in waves and was relentless with their forecheck.

Friday’s 5-1 loss Game 5 at Scotiabank Saddledome was the final nail in the coffin, the deciding game in Colorado’s ‘gentleman’s sweep’ of the Flames.

The best team in the West was also the first team eliminated from the West.

“The ultimate disappointment,” said netminder Mike Smith, who, at 37 years old was the Flames’ best player the entire series and stopped another 32 on Friday. “It’s why you want to play hockey. It’s why you train in the summer and battle through an exhibition season, a regular season, put in a ton of work.

“Obviously as you get older, these opportunities diminish and it gets shorter for you. It’s definitely disappointing.”

Their stars, particularly Gaudreau and Monahan, couldn’t seem to get going which is concerning considering they’d been dangerous all year. Gaudreau had 99 points in the regular season and will likely be a nominee for the Hart Trophy, while Monahan, up for the Lady Byng, scored 34 goals and 48 assists in 78 games. Newcomer Lindholm had a career season.

In the end, they finished with five points and were split up for Game 5.

Lindholm played physical on the second line and did his best to shut them down along with Backlund.

Gaudreau had legitimate scoring chances. A breakaway in the first period which saw him shrug off Avalanche defenders Cale Makar and Tyson Barrie. A penalty shot where he went head-to-head with Philipp Grubauer and shot wide. A breakaway with five minutes to go and missed the net.

Flames Johnny Gaudreau misses on a penalty shot on Avalanche goalie Philipp Grubauer during game five between the Colorado Avalanche and Calgary Flames in Calgary on Friday, April 19, 2019. Jim Wells/Postmedia

Calgary had another slow start and were out-shot 5-1 within the first 10 minutes and eventually Colorado broke Mike Smith twice to take a two-goal lead.

With 5.5 seconds left, TJ Brodie caught Grubauer sleeping and gave the home side life.

Trailing 2-1 into the second, the Flames played like their season depended on it. But the bounces never came.

They failed to capitalize on the powerplay while one of Colorado’s best players, Landeskog, was off for hooking. When that expired, the Flames were caught on a long shift in their own zone and eventually Colin Wilson made them pay after some pretty passing with Rantanen. An exhausted Rasmus Andersson and Brodie looked exasperated as the visitors went up 3-1.

Gaudreau looked to have stuffed the puck in at 9:34 of the second period, but despite a Calgary challenge, it was ruled that Sam Bennett had interfered with Grubauer. No goal.

The Saddledome went quiet when MacKinnon quarterbacked the powerplay with 5:13 remaining and fed Wilson in front for a tap-in to go up 4-1.

Colorado put the game even further out of reach on another man-advantage marker less than a minute into the third. That was it.

Fans hit the exits with 5:45 remaining. A few disgruntled fans threw their jerseys on the ice.

A Flames jersey, thrown by a fan, is picked up by a referee at the start of the third period during game five between the Colorado Avalanche and Calgary Flames in Calgary on Friday, April 19, 2019.Jim Wells/Postmedia

“This is a bad feeling,” said Flames defender Travis Hamonic. “It was obviously not the way we wanted it going and it just kind of snowballed a little bit … we just weren’t good enough obviously. It’s frustrating. We believe in this group. We believe in our players. It’s frustrating to be standing here right now — it’s not the conversations we wanted to be having.”

The signs were there. Maybe the Flames weren’t as good as they thought they were. Or maybe they just can’t bring their best stuff when it matters.

Yes, they beat the Avs 4-0 in Game 1. And, yes, they lost twice in overtime — in Game 2 at home and Game 4 at Denver’s Pepsi Center.

Perhaps their blemishes were most obvious in Game 3, an authoritative 6-2 Avs win. But they had one more chance to stay alive and out-work the Avalanche in front of their home crowd on Friday.

“I didn’t think we played our best consistently through this series and you have to be your best if you want to move on,” Smith said. “You can’t move on just being average. They were the better team, they deserve some credit.

“They snuffed us out offensively and did a good job to shut down our top guys. You always have to remember there’s two teams on the ice. You have to give credit to their team and the way they contained us.”

Calgary Flames Mike Smith during the pre-game skate before facing the Colorado Avalanche in game five of the Western Conference First Round in the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary on Friday, April 19, 2019. Al Charest/Postmedia

First-year head coach Bill Peters managed his bench like a savvy veteran all season, a reason he is in conversation for the Jack Adams Trophy.

But when Colorado coach Jared Bednar buttoned down Calgary’s transition game and exploited the Flames with theirs, stayed relentless on the forecheck and played hungry, Peters’ squad had no answers.

Tkachuk, who lived rent-free in the heads of the Avalanche in Game 1, was in the box for interference when Wilson scored and was a non-factor this night.

And James Neal, who was brought to Calgary specifically for this time of the year (for the next four more years), was sitting in the press box in favour of Austin Czarnik.

Not even Mark Giordano, the odds-on favourite to win the Norris Trophy, could will this one with his work ethic and skill.

They had all the potential, talent and confidence to do damage in the post-season. But for nine days in April when it mattered most, they lost their identity.

The Flames join the Tampa Bay Lightning and Pittsburgh Penguins as the first three teams ousted.

“The regular season means nothing,” Smith said. “Other than you have to make it into the playoffs. Everybody that makes it in is an NHL playoff team and they deserve to be in there. It’s a hard season to get into the playoffs, for one, it’s so competitive. And once you’re in there, anything can happen.”

Flames players wait to shake hands with Colorado players at the end of game five between the Colorado Avalanche and Calgary Flames in Calgary on Friday, April 19, 2019. Flames lost 5-1. Jim Wells/Postmedia

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